Title:Association between Delirium and Cognitive Impairment: Is there a Link?
Volume: 19
Issue: 1
Author(s): Michele Pistacchi*, Manuela Gioulis and Sandro Zambito Marsala
Affiliation:
- Neurology Operational Unit, San Giacomo Hospital, Via dei Carpani 16z, 31033 Castelfranco Veneto (TV), Italy
Keywords:
Delirium subtype, cognitive impairment, dementia screening, population, encephalopathy, neurodegenerative diseases.
Abstract: Background: Delirium and dementia are both disorders involving global cognitive impairment
that can occur separately or at the same time in the elderly.
Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the frequency, correlation, and relative risk between
delirium and cognitive impairment in a prospective population study starting at the basal line (onset of
delirium) over a period of five years. The secondary aim was to determine any possible correlation between
the kind of delirium and a specific type of dementia.
Materials and Methods: We studied 325 patients diagnosed according to the DSM-IV. The neuropsychological,
moods and delirium disorders were evaluated with Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Delirium
Rating Scale-Revised-98, MMSE, Rey auditory-verbal learning test, Digit Span, Symbol Digit Modalities
Test, Raven Progressive Matrices, ADL, and IADL.
Results: The prevalence of delirium in our population was 89 cases (27.4%): 78 patients (48 women and
30 men) showed evolution toward dementia (mean age was 67.9 ± 6.1 years for men and 68.4 ± 9.1 for
women), and 11 patients (5 men and 6 women) presented only isolated delirium without evolution toward
cognitive impairment (mean age of men was 68.1 ± 5.1 years and of women 66.4 ± 7.1). The neuropsychological
study of the patients with delirium with dementia evolution revealed statistically significant
differences over time with a statistically significant intergroup difference and predisposition
toward depression.
Conclusion: The association between delirium and cognitive impairment and the possible role of delirium
as an early marker of neurodegenerative diseases need to be investigated in the future.